Ribbon separating device and method



March 8, 1949 RIBBON SEPARATING DEVICE .AND METHOD Filed July 24, 1948 nTTbrNEY Y A. M. L. woELL l 2,463,732

Patented Mar. 8, 1949 RIBBON SEPARATING METHOD .DEWQE AND.,

Anna Maria Louise Woell, Pompton vLakes, N. J.

'Application Ju1y`24, 194s; seilNoL' 40;'5L6'3- s claims. (c1. 264-70) This application" is' a continuation-impart of my copending application, Serial No. 647,532, led February 14- 1946, now abandoned, for Band Separating and classifying device.`

This invention relates to a ribbon separating device and method and refers more particularly to an apparatus and method for separating strips of woven labels so that they may be inspected and counted.

It is customary in the manufacture of woven labels in'strip form to merely collect the labels in a very large bag as they come off the weaving machine or loom in strip form, and in a representative instance, such a bag may contain 40 or 50 ribbons, each 20 yards long, and constituted of labels end to end, the ribbons being loosely jumbled in the bag. Before the labels are counted and packaged for shipping to the user, they must be individually inspected. It is customary for a group of' operators lto begin operations on a bag, each locating the end of aV ribbon and proceeding therealong, inspecting each label. Such procedure however results in numerous interruptions due to the fact that the ribbons are tangled or that they become tangled in the process of inspect'ion. The entire procedure' of inspection' is very tedious and comparatively costly.

'Anobject of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method of drawing out the label ribbons so that they lie adjacent and parallel and may be drawn past each other for inspection individually without becoming tangled.

A further object is to shorten the time required for inspection.

Still a further object is to provide an apparatus adapted to handle ribbons of varying lengths.

In accomplishing the objects of the present invention there is provided a pulley mounted on a surface ata considerable elevation above the head of the operator, preferably. A ring is suspended from the end of a string, the string being led over the pulley and the other end thereof being engageable by a hook which is located in some such object as a wall or an upright column at a convenient height. A substantially horizontal bar is mounted almost at floor height. When the ribbons to be inspected are long, the free ends of a plurality of the ribbons may be tied to the horizontal bar after having been led through the ring which has been lowered through the pulley to a convenient height. The string or cord may now be used to pull the ring to a greater height, which results in the ribbons being stretched out in a substantially parallel relation to each other until half their length extends upward from the bar 2 to thering andthe other'ha'lf 'downward again to the free hanging end. Each ribbon may now be inspectedw'ithout causingtangling with the oth-'I ers by freeing the end 4 thereof from the bar and pulling the ribbon slowly 'throughthe Vhands of the operator, inspection takingl pl'ac'eas'the rib#- bon passes through the hands of the operator;

To 'inspect the ribbons of `ashorter length, the ends of a multiplicity of ribbons are'lo'oped over the ring and tied to themselves with the'ring at a convenient height,` and the ring then raised to a greater bag.

In the representative instance mentioned previously,` 15 or more ribbons may beV connected to each of three lrings and raised simultaneously to completely evacuate 'one' bag of 45 or 50 ribbons. The use oi this method and apparatus has permitted inspection of a given number of labelribbons in approximately 104 percent ofthe time formerly devoted to that operation. i"

Other objects of this inventionwill in part be obvious and in part hereinafter pointed out. The

invention accordingly consists' in the kfeatures ofY construction, combinations of elements, and arrangements of parts which V`will be exemplied inf` the constructions and methodshereinafter described.' In theaccompanying drawing, in which is shown one of the various illustrative embodi-y 30` ments of this invention:

Figure 1 is a perspective View of the apparatus being used in the separation ofa multiplicity of long ribbons, showing the ribbons in various states of separation. v l Y Figure 2 shows shorter ribbons being separated. Figure 3 is a fragmentaryelevational view of a ribbon of labels itbeing understood that no such detailed showing as of. the contents of the label is possible in Figuresl and2.'

Referring now to Figurel, a mass IIJ of ribbons Y 22 is contained in a bag or a box not shown. .The mass I0 usually comprises three parts, the parts AI, A2, A3., beingv constituted of a multiplicity, usually 20 to 30 of the ribbons22. The'parts AI,

A2, A3 are defined by having oneend ofeach of the ribbons 22 tied together in .a bunch bya string, notrshown. All parts AI, A2, A3, and more if thereare any more,.of .the mass Il) are fastened between the clamp bars I I, I2 after being led through the rings I3, I4, I4A. The rings I3,

I4, "IIIA are suspended lfrom ropes I5, I6, I`I,`the

ropes I5, IB, I'l being led over pulleys I8, I9, 20 mounted on a bracket 2| the latter being mounted on a ceiling or the like. The other end of the ropes I5, I 6, I'I are engageable by the hooks 23 height to draw the ribbons out of the 3 which are mounted on a wall, upright column, or the like.

In Figure 1, rings I4, I4A are shown lowered to a height convenient for the leading of the parts A2, A3, whereas ring I3 is shown pulled up to an elevated position, its rope I5 having its free end engaged on hook 23 to maintain ring I3 in the elevated position. It must be understood however that all the rings I3, I4, IIIA, or as many of them as may be necessary to receive all of the parts AI, A2, A3, of a particular mass I0 of ribbons, should be at the same height at any given time. That is, the parts AI, A2, A3, should be led through the rings and fastened in the clamp bars II, I2, and all of the rings which are in use in the particular operation raised to the elevated position of ring I3. In this way the ribbons are prevented from becoming tangled by the operation of drawing them out to their full length.

Once all of the parts Al, A2, A3, are in the drawn out, elevated position of part AI in Figure 1, the individual ribbons 22 of the parts may be separated consecutively from the parts by pulling downward on that portion of the ribbon extending from the clamp bar to the ring. Inspection of the ribbon may then proceed.

The above method and apparatus eliminates various objections to the previous method of inspecting the label ribbons. These disadvantages include the fact that if a single part of a single ribbon is attempted to be withdrawn from the mass I0, tangles and bunches develop in the mass I0 periodically and frequently, so that in a room full of operators engaged in the operation of inspection, one or more operators may have to leave their work to assist an operator who has reached a point on the ribbon which he is attempting to inspect where a ribbon is hopelessly snarled up with the rest of the ribbons.

Referring to Figure 2, the apparatus of Figure 1 is shown in connection with a mass 33 of ribbons 22 comprising the parts BI, B2, the ribbons comprised by the parts BI, B2, being shorter than ribbons 22 illustrated in Figures 1 and 3. In separating the ribbons of the parts BI, B2, one end of each part BI, B2 is connected to a ring I3A, I4B, both rings at the time of the connection of the parts BI, B2, thereto being in the lower position illustrated by the position of ring MB. All of the parts of the mass 3B being connected to rings, the rings are simultaneously raised to the elevated position in which ring ISA is shown. The ribbons of a part are so fastened together that pulling upon the lower end of a single ribbon when the part is in the elevated position of ring I3 in Figure 2 will result in the ribbon coming free from the part, whereupon the ribbon may be inspected. This fastening may conveniently take the form of merely looping the short end of part BI over ring I3A and tying it to the main course of part BI by a separate piece of string B3. This method of separating the ribbons and parts also is free from the possibility of tangling or snarling the ribbons as experienced in former procedures.

It will thus be seen that there is provided a device in which the several objects of this invention are achieved, and which is well adapted to meet the conditions of practical use. As Various possible embodiments might be made of the above invention and as various changes might be 4. made in the embodiments above set forth, it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawing is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

What is claimed is:

1. In an apparatus for separating ribbons, stationary means for engaging one end of a multiplicity of said ribbons, a pulley mounted at a substantial distance above said means, a rope led over said pulley, a ring suspended from one end of said rope, and means for engaging the other end of said rope to maintain said ring in a given position.

2. In an apparatus for separating ribbons, a clamp bar for engaging one end of a multiplicity of said ribbons, a pulley mounted at a substantial distance above said bar, a rope led over said pulley, a ring suspended from one end of said rope, and means for engaging the other end of said rope to maintain said ring in a given position.

3. The method of separating woven label ribbons from a mass of ribbons comprising parts, each part comprising a multiplicity of ribbons fastened together by a string or the like uniting in parallel relation one end of each ribbon, comprising fastening an end of each part to a separate elevating means, simultaneously elevating all the parts and removing ribbons from the parts.

fi. rihe method of separating woven label ribbons from a mass of ribbons comprising parts, each part comprisnig a multiplicity of ribbons fastened together by a string or the like uniting in parallel relation one end of each ribbon, comprising fastening an end of each part to a separate elevating means, simultaneously elevating all the parts and removing the ribbons singly from the parts.

5. The method of separating woven label ribbons from a mass of ribbons comprising parts, each part comprising a multiplicity of ribbons fastened together by a string or the like uniting in parallel relation one end of each ribbon, comprising leading each part through an elevating means, fastening said part to a stationary object, elevating said elevating means until said part is completely suspended by said elevating means, and removing each ribbon singly from its part.

6, The method of separating woven label ribbons from a mass of ribbons comprising parts, each part comprising a multiplicity of ribbons fastened together by a string or the like uniting in parallel relation on one end of each ribbon, comprising leading each part through an elevating means, fastening said part to a stationary object, elevating said elevating means until said part is completedly suspended by said eievating means and removing ribbons from said part.

ANNA MARIA LOUISE WOELL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 276,722 Shaw May 1, 1883 959,074 Rublin May 24, 1910 1,721,628 Ingham July 23, 1929 2,376,773 Hogan May 22, 1945 

